3, 2, 1, Lift Off . . . Now What? Maintaining a WordPress Site for Long-Term Security
DPA6 Development, Programming and Architecture
Location: Cotton Row
MONDAY, 4:15 - 5:00 p.m.
You've spent six months working with five different departments on your website redesign. You've gone over each page with a fine-tooth comb. You've perfected the perfect "voice" for your content, striking the right balance between fun and professional. You've launched successfully and clinked glasses at a celebratory happy hour. Congratulations! Now what? Launching a new website is a great feeling, but too often we become lax in maintaining our sites post-launch. Once the dust settles, take action to ensure that your site has the longevity and security that it deserves! When you work this hard for something, it pays to take care of it. In this presentation, I'll go over valuable maintenance tips for Wordpress, the world's most popular content management system: 1. Evaluating whether or not a content management system makes sense for you in the first place: think about maintenance before you build! 2. Setting up a project management tool or ticketing system after launch to track future requests and updates 3. Plugins, plugins, plugins. Keeping a strict "update" schedule and the importance of updates 4. After-launch training sessions and what should be covered 5. Managing permissions for users who may access your site 6. Security provisions - what to configure up front and what to do in case of an attack 7. Backups - how, when, and what to do if the worst should happen and more! Maintenance is not always a "sexy" topic, but just consider the ratio of build time to "maintenance" time. A website build may take six months, but the life of your website could extend five years or more! To say that maintenance is "half the battle" is selling it short - it's more than that. This presentation will arm you with everything you need to know before embarking on a new build, and give you valuable tips to ensure the longevity and security of your existing sites, microsites, and landing pages.
Presenters
Elizabeth Coppinger
Business Analyst, Lucid Agency
Liz Coppinger currently works as the Business Analyst at Lucid Agency, a digital marketing firm in Tempe that specializes in Higher Ed. Her former background as a technical project manager gives her relevant experience in agile development teams, organizational tools, and driving a development project from start to finish. Today, Liz sets the stage for technical projects by performing discovery user testing and setting metrics. To this end, she specializes in task-based testing and survey creation. At Lucid, Liz is also responsible for site launches and training. Outside of work, Liz loves to get lost in a glass of wine and an episode of the old (good) 90210 or enjoy time with her boyfriend.